Ricotta Spinach Pesto Pasta

My mom is an extraordinary cook so, naturally, I look forward to my trips home. This past July was one of those times. Per usual, I packed at the eleventh hour, got little to no sleep and showed up on the east coast like death warmed over. Mom, being the nurturing type that she is, made sure to have a light meal ready. Enter this pasta dish.

Originally printed in the August 2004 issue of Cuisine at Home, this is admittedly the type of recipe I would overlook. Pasta? Pesto? Been there, done that. But this one is a touch different. 

In addition to the usual suspects, this particular pesto contains fresh spinach, lemon zest and freshly squeezed lemon juice. It's then tossed with hot pasta, corn and green beans (yes, corn and green beans! Crazy!) and a healthy dose of ricotta cheese. And for a little acid, the whole shebang is topped with vinegared tomatoes. The result? A protein- and fiber-packed flavor explosion. It's really addictive, and even tastes delicious cold (read: packs great for lunch the next day).

Pasta with Vegetables and Ricotta Spinach Pesto Recipe
Any type of pasta can be used here (I used brown rice fusilli). If you don’t have any nuts on hand, they can easily be omitted from the pesto. Adapted from Cuisine at Home|August 2004.

For the pesto:
2 cups fresh spinach, tightly packed
1 cup fresh basil, tightly packed 
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil 
1/4 cup pine nuts, almonds or walnuts, toasted
2 tablespoons lemon zest 
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, pressed
2 teaspoons kosher salt 
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

12 oz. dry pasta of choice (I like fusilli with all its crevices)
2 cups corn kernels, fresh or frozen
1 1/2 cups green beans, fresh or frozen (if fresh, trimmed and cut in half)
2 cups ricotta cheese

2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved (or regular tomatoes seeded and diced)
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt & pepper

Parmesan cheese for garnish

Place all of the pesto ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth. 

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta according to package directions. If you’re using frozen corn and green beans, add them to the pasta during the last minute of cooking. If using fresh, add them 2-3 minutes before the pasta is finished. Drain.
 
Place the ricotta cheese in the bottom of a large pasta bowl; season lightly with salt and pepper. Add the pasta, vegetables and spinach pesto; toss well.
 
In a mixing bowl, toss the tomatoes with the white wine vinegar, olive oil and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Spoon on top of the pasta. Garnish the entire dish with shaved Parmesan cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.

Pappardelle with Lamb Ragù, Ricotta & Mint

The World Cup came to a screeching halt last Saturday when the U.S. lost against Ghana in overtime. We were at Bill’s Off Broadway watching with a packed house of hardcore fans, including one dressed as George Washington in an American flag cape. It was close, and I do think we got screwed, but in the end, the tragic truth was that the U.S. was out.

We left Bill’s with hung heads, teary eyes and hoarse voices. What a way to start a Saturday.

But we had rapidly approaching dinner plans and needed to buck up, fast. We had no idea what we were making and immediately started brainstorming quick menus that were just a notch or two above the ordinary. This particular lamb ragù fit the bill perfectly.

It’s adapted from a Food & Wine recipe that has been in my “must cook” pile for quite some time. What goes better with flavorful lamb than reduced wine, stock, a handful of savory spices, ricotta cheese and fresh mint? Not much.

I was able to get the ragù simmering away in less than 30 minutes, plus the fresh pasta only took about 3. It tastes decadent and complex but it’s simple enough to throw together at the eleventh hour… even if you are nursing some fresh wounds.

Pappardelle with Lamb Ragù, Ricotta and Mint 
This has even deeper flavors the next day. Adapted from an Andrew Carmellini recipe in Food & Wine. 

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 carrot, finely diced
1 onion, finely diced
1 celery rib, finely diced
1 1/2 pounds ground lamb
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped rosemary
1 1/2 teaspoon chopped thyme
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup dry red wine
One 28-ounce can diced tomatoes (you don’t have to but I added an extra 14 ounce can as well)
1 1/4 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
3/4 pound pappardelle
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 cup fresh ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons chopped mint

In a large heavy pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the carrot, onion and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Add the ground lamb, coriander, fennel, cumin, rosemary and thyme. Season with a hearty pinch of salt and a few fresh grinds of black pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and stir well, allowing some of that raw taste to cook out of it, about 1 minute. Add the wine and cook until evaporated, about 5 minutes. Next, add the diced tomatoes and their juices (and a little extra if you’re like me) along with the stock; bring to a boil. Partially cover the pot and cook over moderately low heat until the liquid is slightly reduced and slightly thickened, 25-30 minutes.

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until it’s al dente (if you’re using fresh pasta, this should only take about 3 minutes). Drain, return to the pot and add the butter; toss well.

Divide pasta among plates and top with a ladel of hot ragu. Place a scoop of ricotta cheese on top of each with a drizzle of olive oil, a sprinkling of kosher salt and pepper and some fresh mint.

Shrimp Ravioli and Red Vodka Sauce

I've been waiting for this moment - when my pasta-making adventures would bring me face to face with the queen bee herself, ravioli - for a very long time. As you may already know, I get weak in the knees around the stuff. It's what I order anytime I go back to New York. It's what I dream about when I'm not in New York. I've got it bad. I find store-bought ravioli incredibly uninteresting. And doughy. But homemade? Fugeddaboutit!

So with Martha's pasta maker in hand, I cranked out some paper-thin sheets of delicate dough (this time I made it with 2 cups of flour, 3 eggs, salt and a drizzle of olive oil). Deciding on the perfect filling involved a lot of hand wringing. I mean, this was historic, me making my first ravioli, and I simply HAD to get it right. After about an hour of online browsing, I felt even more pressure and indecisiveness. Since the weather has been scorching hot (for Seattle, anyway), I wanted to pick something on the lighter side. Mushrooms, rich cheeses and cream sauces wouldn't do. Then it hit me: shrimp! And what veggie a) tastes delicious pureed, and b) accompanies shrimp perfectly? Leeks!

So I crossed my fingers and started mixing. Sauteed leeks, cooked shrimp, garlic, eggs, ricotta, a little Parmesan and a handful of fresh herbs got whizzed in the food processor. Figuring out how to best assemble the ravioli was tricky, to say the least, but I eventually found a modus operandi that worked. After hearing other people's ravioli war stories, I too was anxious about them falling apart in boiling water....but they didn't.

I decided to serve these buggers with a simple, quick red vodka sauce and I've gotta say, it was a match made in heaven. Tristan and I ooooo'ed and ahhhh'ed throughout the entire meal, muttering how unbelievably delicate the pasta was, how light and fluffy the filling turned out and how insane that the whole process took me 3 whole hours!

But honestly, I'd spend 3 hours like that any day.



Shrimp Ravioli
Scallops, lobster or crab could easily be used in place of the shrimp. And I think a simple lemon butter sauce would be an excellent alternative to red vodka sauce.

Fresh pasta sheets
3 tablespoons butter, divided
2 thin leeks, washed and thinly sliced (whites and light green parts only)
Salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb shrimp, peeled, deveined and roughly chopped
8 ounces (about 1 cup) ricotta cheese
3 eggs
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (or a mixture of parsley & chives)

Egg wash: 1 egg + a few splashes of cold water

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add leeks and a pinch of salt; sautee, stirring frequently, until softened but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and sautee a minute longer. Transfer to a food processor.

In the same skillet over medium heat, add remaining tablespoon butter. Add shrimp and cook, stirring, just until no longer transluscent. Remove from heat and transfer to food processor.

Add ricotta, eggs, Parmesan, herbs and a pinch of salt to the leeks and shrimp. Process in short pulses until mixture forms a chunky paste. Cover and place in refrigerator until ready to use.

Work with one pasta sheet at a time on a lightly floured surface. Place tablespoons of shrimp filling on upper half of pasta sheet at 1 1/2-inch intervals. Using a pastry brush or simply your finger, brush all edges with egg wash, including in between filling scoops. At this point, I find it easiest to cut segments of 4 ravioli (unless you have another set of hands helping you).

Starting at one end, carefully fold bottom half of pasta sheet over the upper filling, doing your best to match up edges. Work your way down the 4-ravioli segment, slowly removing air pockets as the pasta sheet is laid over the top. Using a pizza wheel or pastry scraper, cut into individual ravioli. I was scared to death about them falling apart when boiled, so to ensure success, pinch all edges of each ravioli together using fingers or the tines of a fork. If they become a little warped, simply trim with cutter to get clean edges. Place ravioli on a cornmeal-dusted baking sheet to prevent sticking; place in refrigerator. Repeat process with rest. At this point, ravioli can be frozen for later use.

Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add ravioli, one at a time, and cook for about 6 minutes (they should float). Drain and serve with sauce of choice.



Quick Red Vodka Sauce
This sauce only takes a few minutes to make and can be used in a multitude of pasta dishes.

2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2/3 cup vodka
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 large can (28 oz) pureed or crushed tomatoes

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add minced garlic and red pepper flakes; saute until garlic is just fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add vodka and bring to a simmer; cook about 4 minutes. Add tomatoes, fresh parsley and cream and continue simmering for about 8 minutes. Adjust seasoning and serve hot.